Bum sliding – it's all fun and games until a hiker gets hurt. That's the message from one Canadian mountain rescue team after crews found themselves attending to two virtually identical callouts in two days for hikers who were seriously injured trying to slide downhill.
Yesterday, North Shore Rescue in North Vancouver, BC, took to social media to report that they had responded to a hiker on Hollyburn Mountain at Cypress ski area suffering a suspected leg fracture. The man was wearing traction devices but had suffered a fall.
"We believe that this individual either intentionally bum slid, or slipped and slid (the details are a little unclear), and in the process of sliding either hit a terrain irregularly or his trail crampons dug into the ground," says NSR.
"Either way, his leg stuck in place while his momentum carried him forward, resulting in a suspected leg fracture."
The previous day, the same team deployed to the same mountain to help a female hiker who had suffered a very similar injury under nearly identical circumstances.
"The relatively well-equipped hiker had been “bum sliding” down a slope when her foot caught the terrain and her momentum continued forward, resulting in a serious ankle injury."
That hiker was also wearing proper footwear and using "crampon-like" traction devices. Both hikers had to be evacuated by stretcher for treatment.
Why is bum sliding so risky?
Bum sliding, or sliding down an icy or snow-covered slope on your seat instead of hiking down, may appear to be a fun, fast or even safer way to descend than walking, but NSR warns that it is much more hazardous than it appears.
"Bum sliding - while appearing fun and a quick way down - is fraught with risk. It is very easy to pick up speed and get out of control, especially when bouncing over uneven terrain."
The team warns that a sliding maneuver should only be performed if you are in possession of an ice axe and know how to use it to self-arrest. When mountaineers self-arrest, they also raise their crampons above the ground when sliding to avoid injury.
"When sliding with spikes, there is a risk that they will dig into the ground - stopping your foot/lower extremity in its tracks - while your momentum carries the rest of you on, causing significant injury such as what we have seen these last two rescues."
The team does recommend wearing proper footwear and using crampons or Microspikes – not snowshoes – for steep, icy hikes, but focusing on careful foot placement, choosing your path wisely and using extra balance assistance such as trekking poles instead of taking the back seat.
